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Bonded Labour International Journal of Management and Social Sciences Research (IJMSSR) ISSN: 2319-4421 21 Volume 4, No. 6, June 2015 Bonded Labour Ramanjeet Kaur, Assistant Professor, Physics Department, R.S.D.College, Firozpur City, (Punjab) India ABSTRACT over the Colonial world was the system of Slave Trade. Under which black people mainly from African countries Bonded labor is one among the various socio-economic were sold at Plantation and Mining works in the countries evils of India. Bonded labour stems from a variety of of North and South America by their European colonial causes which include caste-system, denial of access to masters. They were forcefully exploited for their labour land ownership and corruption within the political and and were put into inhuman conditions. This trade remained judicial spheres. In India, bonded labor continues to be in practice for centuries and only in modern times due to significant in various fields like as a vestige of traditional sustained movements by Black people (for instance in social relations, unorganized and informal sector, South Africa under the leadership of Nelson Mandela) and agriculture and Child bonded labor. The Supreme Court also due to end of Colonial era their conditions somewhat has played an important role for abolition of Bonded changed. Labor and on rehabilitation part. Many other organizations in India have bonded labor on their 2. CAUSES OF BONDED LABOUR agendas, such as the National Institute of Rural Development, the National Human Rights Commission, Bonded labour stems from a variety of causes, which are and the Centre for Education and Communication. Along highly debated in the literature: with these efforts people themselves need to change their mentality towards weaker sections of the society. A. Caste-System: Bonded labour has its roots in the caste system. The caste Keywords system has been described as uniquely Indian [1] and Bonded labour, colonialism, caste-system, unorganized slavery could not exist without it since the majority of and informal sector, rehabilitation slaves are Harijans (the lowest social group, actually outside the traditional varna system of caste). Wealthy higher-caste landlords typically give small loans to 1. INTRODUCTION destitute individuals or families without assets, whose labour is their only means of repayment. It is clear that Bonded labour is one among the various socio-economic land ownership, wealth, power, and higher caste status are evils of India. It is being practiced in our society since interrelated. Harijans have been coerced into working the ancient times and unfortunately, it is still continued to be land of others, because they have no opportunity to practiced in various forms. purchase land of their own. By and large, the only asset belonging to the Harijans is their labour. Many Dalit Bonded labour is a person's pledge of their labour or families currently residing in rural India began as migrant services as security for the repayment for a loan or other labourers and settled upon finding agricultural or quarry obligation. The services required to repay the debt may be work. Employment agencies have often been used to help undefined, and the duration of the services may also be migrant workers find positions with upper-caste landlords, undefined. It can be passed on from generation to and in such circumstances the fee paid by the landlord to generation. Bonded labour is based upon two principles: the agency becomes the worker’s debt [2]. that an individual is required to work under the threat of a penalty, and that the service performed is involuntary. The B. Denial of access to land ownership penalties and restrictions placed upon bonded labourers The denial of access to land ownership is also an are the key differentiators between debt-bondage slavery important contributing factor to bonded labour. Land has and otherwise poor working conditions. been identified as the most important asset in Indian agriculture economy because its possession “is a symbol The system of bonded labour is one of the main of entitlement, power and privileges and is synonymous characteristics of the feudal hierarchical society. The with not only the economic status of a household but its system was designed to enable a few socially and social status as well” [3]. Besides status, employment economically powerful sections of society to exploit the options (especially self-employment) in rural areas are weaker sections of the society. This practice was in heavily dependent on land ownership. In rural India, the existence in various forms in several parts of the world. It number of Scheduled Castes in 1994 who cultivated their was one of the cruellest outcomes of colonialism all over own land amounted to less than half the number of higher the world. One of the worst forms of bonded labour all i-Explore International Research Journal Consortium www.irjcjournals.org International Journal of Management and Social Sciences Research (IJMSSR) ISSN: 2319-4421 22 Volume 4, No. 6, June 2015 castes who owned and cultivated land [4]. Bonded labour the years. Their exist today probably less due to social will certainly continue so long as land rights are denied to custom and more due to other elements like force and lower portions of society. compulsion. C. Political Corruption B. Bonded labour in agriculture Corruption within the political and judicial spheres has Most of the exploitation occurs in Farming or Agriculture perpetuated the quiet acceptance of forced bonded labour. Sector and it is the weaker portion of the society which is Justice is often blocked by the severely congested Indian exploited most due to caste hierarchy and due to the court system. There are at least twenty-five million cases absence of a proper land reform policy. The land is pending in courts, and most cases take decades to reach traditionally owned by the higher castes and lower strata resolution. The rule of law has disintegrated in India to the people have very little or no land for farming. Thus they point at which it is nearly impossible to conduct business, are forced to work as labourers in other’s fields. In states preserve human rights, or achieve justice through like Kerala, where land reforms have been implemented legitimate channels 5].The fundamental problems are the by statute, bonded labour virtually has been eliminated. lack of access to a speedy trial, low rates of conviction and But in States like Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Tamil administrative corruption, apathy, and non-performance Nadu and Karnataka, large portions of land are still held [6]. by families who practice feudal forms of land ownership and labour employment. Political corruption discourages individuals without the necessary connections from running for public office, the The modernization of agriculture has created new filing of incident reports with police, and the bringing of demands for a stable and servile labour force, which, in claims to trial. It has become ingrained in public sentiment some cases, is obtained through credit bondage and that justice is unlikely to be achieved through legal means. elements of force, deceit and compulsion. The condition of Without the support of local public servants (e.g., agricultural bonded labour is so worst that thousands of politicians and/or police), bonded labourers have virtually farmers, when faced with the possibility of a lifetime in no recourse within the Indian government to seek refuge bondage, have chosen to commit suicide [10]. More than from tyrannical landlords. 180,000 Indian farmers are estimated to have committed suicide since 1997 because of their formidable debts. The 3. FORMS OF BONDED LABOUR IN Indian government attempted to cancel the farmers’ debts INDIA with a $13 billion bailout, which was unsuccessful since an estimated 88 per cent of debts were owed to private Eighteen of India’s twenty-two states have documented creditors (landlords) [11]. The suicides indicate the cases of bonded slavery: Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal magnitude of desperation experienced by millions of Pradesh, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, landless low-caste individuals in rural India. Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, C. Bonded labour in unorganized and informal sector Uttrakhand, and West Bengal [7]. An estimated 80 per The incidence of bonded labour is perhaps the highest in cent of bonded labourers in India work in the agricultural the unorganized and informal sector in India. And among sector [8]. As reported by Anti-Slavery International, the unorganized sectors, the incidence of bondage is many other Indian workplaces employ bonded labourers, probably the highest in quarries and open mines. These including brick kilns, stone quarries, silk farms, rice mills, industries are mainly characterized by the predominance salt pans, fisheries, mines, forests, match and firework of manual processes, seasonality, remoteness and contract factories, tea and cardamom plantations, shrimp farms, migrant labour. Brick kilns are another industry which cigarette factories, domestic households, and textile reportedly continues to have a sizeable incidence of plants[9].The following types of bonded labour continue bonded labour. The industries like rice mills, sericulture to be significant: and silk weaving, woolen carpets, fish processing, and construction are also a big origin of bonded labour. A. Bonded labour a vestige of traditional social relations D. Child bonded
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